Secrets of writing and recording hit songs

SECRETS OF WRITING AND RECORDING HIT SONGS WITH ZERO BUDGET
An Interview of award winning songwriter Tina Boyd, 11/13/2002

Q1) How Do You Start To Write A Song – Hook Melody Etc… ?
A1) Sometimes with a keyboard or guitar I'll stumble upon a riff or motif that's a keeper. Then I write it down as quickly as possible. Then, if I'm out driving or whatever, as soon as I get home I'll record it.

Then I'll program a drumbeat and start to layer upon that. The important thing is that the melody be singable and catchy.

Q2) The quality of your demo recordings is really phenomenal? Did you study studio recording/engineering? Also tell me about your equipment for example what kinds of microphones, and compressors, tape decks etc…?
A2) I have the most minimalistic, old obsolete outdated equipment ever. I never studied recording. What I would do is when I was recording at professional studios is just watch and learn as much as possible and do what they did. But a lot of it is your ear. The effect I use is an old zoom guitar effects box but I use it on my voice. I believe that you should always try and make something out of nothing. I take what I have, which is basically nothing and make something out of it.

My microphone is not even a vocal mic. It's a Shure SM57. I've also got a 15-year-old Alesis reverb. I have a compressor but I don't use it. It's in a box in the closet. It takes away the warmth from my vocals and the rawness. It looses the roughness. Maybe I'm not using it right but I never had any luck with it.

I then record into an Alesis 8 track ADAT. This isn't an expensive setup. I don't hear anything professionally recorded and produced that gets more quality or draws more emotion out of people. Remember the Beatles used to record with a four track.

Q3) Do you program drumbeats or just a click track to lay down your song ideas and then bring in a real drummer later?
A3) Usually -- just to write the song I'll use just a drum loop just to get something down. Or I'll put the machine in song mode to get the ABAB format going.

Even though I'm not a guitarist I'll record simple versions of everything with the right chords. And it's enough to make the song come to life. When the band members hear the melody and words they'll come up with their distinctive parts and then we pretty much have a new Funky Gloworm song.

Q4) How many hours will you work on a song?
A4) It depends, sometimes I can be like a hermit person that has a long beard and Howard Hughes fingernails. It just depends on how much time I have and what kind of a mood I'm in and if I'm not totally frustrated by it and I'm not feeling like it's not fresh anymore and I'm messing it up. Sometimes it's just better to walk away and then come back to it.

Some songs I've just recorded all the way through and recorded them the same day. Then sometimes I'll go back and revise the melody. Some songs take a day; usually it doesn't take very long when I'm inspired.

Q5) Who are your biggest influences?
A5) Queen, ELO, Boston. Aaron Copeland, although he has nothing to do with my music, I love him. Easter Music, I'll go to Hare Krishna shops and get tapes. Of course the Beatles have obviously influenced me duh.

I was exposed to a lot of classical music growing up and sang classical music in High School. So that definitely influences me.

Q6) How often do you come up with a cool song?
A6) That depends where I am in my life. If I'm free to do music sometimes 2 a day or it just depends. I have hundreds of songs, my car, my amigo, caught on fire and a lot of my songs got burned. I have another two suitcases full of cassettes that I've done – all originals.

Q7) What advice do you have to inspire and help aspiring songwriters?
A8) You should always write from your heart. Use life experiences. That's a good way to get yourself motivated it's also good therapy – to write a song if your happy or sad to give yourself strength. I get really inspired going outside. Listening to other music, radio, old new obscure, pop or whatever. Just listening. There's no song written that hasn't been written before. "There's nothing new under the sun."

Q8) How do you know a song you're writing is good or should be scrapped?
A8) I know right away. A lot of it is opinion. What I think is bad some people think is really good. And hopefully it sounds good to other people. I don't care what anyone thinks though. I just do it. I'm not trying to please anyone or get approval. I just do it for myself. It just comes out.

Q9) What kind of drum machine do you use?
A9) Now we're going back to the archives. It's an Alesis R18 or something. You quantize and push buttons it's really old fashioned. I don't think people even have them anymore. I think I'm the only person in America that still has one.

Q10) Do you think of how a live audience will respond to a song or just write it?
A10) Most of the time I just write it. But during rehearsals the band has a lot of input. We try very hard to not overproduce so that we can reproduce it live. Sometimes, when I dream of being on stage or something, it might happen but the audience just connects with me through a common experience. We've all crossed that bridge together or something.

Q11) How did you start writing with a Sitar?
A11) I really like some of the stuff the Beatles did with the Sitar during that era. I'd like to put some didgeridoo on some songs. I like all kinds of exotic sounds and textures.

Q12) What equipment do you recommend for aspiring songwriters?
A12) I recommend the old-fashioned tape recorder. Get your ideas down. I love the ADAT because it sounds awesome and you can transfer. But I think computer-recording solutions are the way to go for mixing and editing. Whatever you have use it. Don't let money ever stop you. The Beatles did their stuff on four tracks 15 years ago. Then on 8 tracks, 16, 24 etc… Now there's no limit. It's like my Mom always said, "Make something out of nothing" because sometimes the best "somethings" come out of the least "nothings."

List of song examples of Tina's Songwriting.

1. Sitar Intro Blending into 4/4 Synth Part Seamlessly.
2. Make someone feel the Sun on them on a beautiful afternoon by painting a verbal picture.
3. Make you feel like your as free as a child riding on a carousel.
4. Paint a picture with music that makes you feel like you're floating without a care in a beautiful shimmering Ocean of Love.
5. Middle Eastern Dance Style song gauranteed to set the mood for a romantic evening -- or so we're told by our fans!

Click below to get the complete songs used for demonstration purposes above